Edaphology

Acquire a basic grounding in soil science, including an understanding of the formation, constituents, properties and types of soils in the world.

Understand soil functions and ecosystem services and their importance in the functioning of ecosystems and the importance of soil diversity.

Lecture classes (26h)
1. The soil: concept of soil. The soil as a system. Productive and environmental functions of the soil. The soil biota. (2h)
2. The organization of the soil: from the pedosphere to the microstructure. Pedion, profile and horizons. Types of horizons. Nomenclature of soil horizons. Diagnostic horizons. (3h)
3. Soil formation factors. Influence on the formation and characteristics of soils of environmental factors: parent material, climate, topography, organisms, and time. (2h)
4. Soil components I. Solid phase: inorganic components and organic components. Nature, composition, properties, and study methods. (3h)
5. Soil components II. Fluid phases: the dissolution of the soil and the soil atmosphere. Nature, composition, properties, and study methods. (1h)
6. Soil properties I. Physical properties: colour, texture, structure, density and porosity.
7. Soil properties II. Physic-chemical properties. The reaction of the soil. Ion exchange and ion retention. Red-ox reactions. (1h)
8. Pedogenetic processes. Types of pedogenetic processes. Horizons and pedoturbation. Ripening. Weathering and evolution of organic matter. Processes in hydromorphic environments: reducing conditions and alternating redox conditions. Transfers in solution. Transfers in suspension: clay eluviation and illuviation, podzolization. Meta-pedogenetic processes. (3h)
9. Soil classification. The World Reference Base for Soil Resources: structure, diagnostic criteria and reference soil groups. Soil taxonomy. Equivalences. (4h)
10. The soils of the World. Reference groups of the World Reference Base for Solo Resource: description, distribution, use and management. (3h)

Interactive classes (12h)

Seminars (6h)
-Introduction to soil sampling and description (1h)
-General data on soils and their interpretation (1h)
-Interpretation, classification and evaluation of soils (4h)

Field practice (6h)
A tour through the natural environment oriented to the interpretation of the factors of formation, morphology, properties and processes of formation of different types of soils in Galicia will be carried out.

Tutorials (3h): Oriented to the resolution of students' doubts.
-Formation factors (1h)
-Soil components and properties and Classification and interpretation of soils (1h).

Basic
- PORTA CASANELLAS, J., LÓPEZ-ACEVEDO, M., POCH CLARET, R., 2014. Edafología: uso y protección de suelos. 3ª ed. Madrid: Mundiprensa. Bibl. Bioloxía A TG 292
- IUSS Grupo de trabajo WRB. 2015. Base Referencial Mundial del Recurso Suelo. Un marco conceptual para la clasificación, correlación y comunicación internacional. Actualización 2015. Informes sobre Recursos Mundiales de Suelos 106. FAO, Roma. http://www.fao.org/docrep/011/a0510s/a0510s00.HTM
- WHITE, R.E., 2006. Principles and practice of soil science: the soil as a natural resource. 4th ed. Malden: Blackwell Publishing. Bibl. Farmacia A TS 21 B.


Complementary
- DRIESSEN PM, DECKERS, JA. SPAARGAREN, OC AND NACHTERGAELE FO (Eds.). 2001. Lecture Notes on the Major Soils of the World. World Soil Resources Reports 94. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/40120040_Lecture_Notes_on_the_…
- EUROPEAN SOIL BUREAU NEWORK. 2005. Soil Atlas of Europe. European Comission, Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, Louxemburg. http://eusoils.jrc.ec.europa.eu/projects/soil_atlas/Download.cfm
- FITZPATRICK, E.A., 1984. Suelos: su formación, clasificación y distribución. México: CECSA.México: CECSA. Bibl. Bioloxía TS 34 A.
- ORGIAZZI, A., BARDGETT, R.D., BARRIOS, E., BEHAN-PELLETIER, V., BRIONES, M.J.I., CHOTTE, J-L., DE DEYN, G.B., EGGLETON, P., FIERER, N., FRASER, T., HEDLUND, K., JEFFERY, S., JOHNSON, N.C., JONES, A., KANDELER, E., KANEKO, N., LAVELLE, P., LEMANCEAU, P., MIKO, L., MONTANARELLA, L., MOREIRA, F.M.S., RAMIREZ, K.S., SCHEU, S., SINGH, B.K., SIX, J., VAN DER PUTTEN, W.H., WALL, D.H. (EDS.), 2016, Global Soil Biodiversity Atlas. European Commission, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg. 176 pp. https://esdac.jrc.ec.europa.eu/public_path/shared_folder/Atlases/JRC_gl…
- HUANG, P.M., LI, Y., SUMNER, M.E. eds., 2012. Handbook of soil sciences: properties and processes. 2nd ed. Boca Raton: CRC Press Taylor & Francis Group. Bibl. Bioloxía TS 274 1
- BOHN, H.L., MCNEAL, B.L. Y O’CONNOR, G.A., 1993. Química del suelo. México: Limusa. Bibl. Bioloxía A TS 37.

Knowledge: Con01; Con02; Con11

Skills: H/D01; H/D02; H/D03; H/D06; H/D07; H/D08; H/D09; H/D10; H/D11

Competences: Comp02; Comp03; Comp04; Comp05; Comp08

In the lectures, in which the basic aspects of the subject will be presented through master classes, audiovisual media will be used and students will be provided, through the virtual classroom of the subject, with the basic material to follow the theoretical classes, as well as complementary material (texts, graphs, tables...) to encourage participation and debate during the class. Computer resources will also be used through links to web pages with soil science information. Attendance and completion not mandatory

Interactive classes:
Seminars, questionnaires and group work will focus on the students' personal work under the guidance and direction of the teaching staff to deal with aspects of the subject that cannot be considered in the theoretical classes and to tackle the resolution of problems and applied aspects of soil science. To this end, discussion, collaborative and problem-based learning will be encouraged in the resolution of case studies. Attendance and completion of the seminars and questionnaires is not mandatory. The realization and delivery of the group work is compulsory.

In the field trip, the student's personal work will be aimed at fostering observation skills and the description and interpretation of soils, helping to achieve this objective through discussion and collaborative analysis. Attendance and performance are mandatory to pass the course in both opportunities (minimum attendance percentage 100%).

Tutorials will be carried out in a very small group, to clarify doubts, provide information or guide the students, as well as to know the progress in the acquisition of skills. Attendance and completion are not compulsory

To facilitate the preparation and monitoring of all activities by the student, the virtual classroom will be used in the Moodle platform of the virtual campus of the USC and MS Teams.

This tool will provide information on the teaching programme and complementary materials for the study of the subject.

At the beginning of the course, students will be provided with the following material in the virtual classroom:

TEACHING GUIDE: the approved teaching guide for the subject.
ACTIVITY PLANNING: guide indicating the planning of activities.
PROBLEMS: material for interpretation and classification of soils (solutions will be discussed in seminars).

The evaluation will take into account attendance, participation and knowledge acquired in classroom activities, group work and a final test.

The assimilation of content by students will be checked by completing questionnaires that will be delivered through the virtual classroom.

The field practice will be assessed by completing a questionnaire.

a) Continuous assessment (40% of the final mark):
- Attendance and participation in face-to-face activities (lectures, field trips, seminars) will be assessed: 10% of the final mark.
-Answers to questionnaires and problems that will be given to students through the virtual classroom: 10% of the final mark.
-Completion of a compulsory group work. Students will have to present a project (carried out in groups of a maximum of 3 people) consisting of a posterl on some environmental aspect (impact, biodiversity conservation, etc.) where soil is a central element in the topic: 20% of the final mark, compulsory.

Assessment of learning outcomes: Con01; H/D01; H/D02; H/D03; H/D06; H/D07; H/D08; H/D09; H/D10; H/D11; Comp03; Comp04; Comp08.


(b) Compulsory final examination. It will consist of questions on the content of the subject: 60% of the final mark.

Assessment of learning outcomes: Con01; Con02; Con11; H/D01; H/D06; H/D07; H/D08; H/D11; Comp02; Comp05; Comp08.

To pass the matter at the 1st opportunity, the final grade will be the sum of the scores of each of the evaluation criteria. The marks of the different activities of the continuous assessment will only be added to the final mark if 30% of their value is reached. If a minimum mark is not reached in the final test (40% of its value), the final mark will be that of this test.

The student who has to take the second opportunity will keep the marks obtained in the continuous assessment if he/she has reached the minimum mark, but will have to repeat the final exam.

In the case of repeaters, the marks obtained in the continuous assessment, if they have passed the minimum mark, will be retained until the end of the following academic year.

In the case of students who have been granted dispensation to attend class, the assessment will be carried out by means of an exam on the contents of the program (60% of the final mark) and a practical exam (40% of the final mark).

In cases of fraudulent performance of exercises or tests, the regulations for the evaluation of students' academic performance and the revision of grades will be applied.

Classroom work

Lectures: 26 hours
Interactive classes:
- Field practice: 6 hours
-Seminars: 6 hours
-Tutorials: 2 hours
Exams: 2 hours
Total hours of face-to-face work: 42 hours

Personal work
Individual study: 55.5 hours
Group work: 6 hours
Recommended reading, library activities or similar: 8 hours
Attendance at lectures or other recommended activities: 1 hour
Total hours of personal work: 70.5

Total hours devoted to the subject: 42 face-to-face + 70.5 personal hours = 112.5 hours

-Attendance and active participation in lectures and interactive teaching activities, including field practices.

-With the aim of encouraging participation in the classes, it is recommended to carry out the required activities throughout the course and, in particular, to work with the information provided through the virtual classroom, before the lectures and interactive classes.

-Use of specialised bibliography, not only textbooks, but also research and popular science articles.

-Distribution of personal work throughout the semester.

-Use of tutorial hours to resolve any doubts that may arise during the study of the subject, throughout the course.

Communication channels with students:

- MS Teams: in the subject classroom, individual conversations for personalised tutorials.
- Virtual classroom of the subject (Moodle).
- E-mail (only USC institutional e-mail).

It is important that students work on the material made available to them prior to the face-to-face sessions in order to favour interaction with the teaching staff.